Prayers of Praise

Julia Cameron's Seeking Wisdom, week 4

Welcome to the week four post for Julia Cameron’s Seeking Wisdom! Keep reading for my reactions to the fourth chapter, followed by the weekly check in.

Anything can happen, child. Anything can be.

-Shel Silverstein

This chapter focuses on a third type of prayer: praise. “We will actively discover- and rejoice in- the miracles in our lives.”

Singing God’s Praise

Cameron writes about the power in noticing- and praising- the beauty and marvel of the world around us, from the full moon to skyscrapers. This reminded me of Mary Oliver’s oft-quoted “Instructions for living a life” (pay attention / be astonished / tell about it).

Witnessing the Miraculous

Again Cameron interviews friends to discuss their spiritual lives. There’s a lot of lapsed Catholics in these pages. Many found their way to a spiritual life after horrible things- all manner of abuse, death, and substance abuse. I think what bothers me about these interviews is that a) she’s largely interviewing her social circle, which doesn’t provide much diversity and b) they’re never deep enough to really give me a sense of who this person is or how their spiritual life impacts their life now (I think with regards to religious beliefs we know, especially in the US at this time, that people’s words and actions do not always match up).

In God’s Time

Trust in timing. Cameron writes that when she’s wished for God to hurry up, it turns out she’s not as ready as she thought she was.

Synchronicity

If there’s one thing Cameron preaches about that I whole heartedly believe in, it’s synchronicities. Too many things have lined up perfectly for me for it to be just a coincidence. They are more likely to happen, or I am more likely to notice them, when I am actively involved in my creative life. The challenge is, of course, to remain engaged in my creative life without getting pulled away from it by other life circumstances. As someone with a family, caregiving responsibilities, and many other things to juggle, this is often hard for me!

Life is a Prayer

“Each plant and person has a divine spark urging it to fulfill its destiny, to add its voice to the mighty chorus that is life.” A nice sentiment, but this was another chapter where I felt like Cameron didn’t quite connect all the dots for me (i.e., what does timing have to do with praise?)

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Check In

How did your week go?

I did a little treasure hunting this week at my local creative reuse. These days I mostly dig through the vintage ephemera, office supplies, and occasionally peek through the fabric (I did not buy scraps from a vintage cutter quilt, and I kind of regret it now). I found three college yearbooks from the 1950s and couldn’t resist buying them all. The cashier and I both marveled at how everyone managed to look the same in the pages. I had also grabbed a thin softcover book that was some sort of high school reunion program from the 70s. Upon further inspection, the reunion program and college yearbooks belonged to the same woman. Phyllis Galphin was written on the inside of the yearbook covers, and I found her in the reunion program as well, which included each class member’s senior portrait as well as an update about their life 25 years later. Phyllis became a housewife, and had two children with her husband. She was living in Houston at the time.

If you’re reading along with me, feel free to check in in the comments!

1. How many days this week did you do your morning pages?

2. Did you take an Artist Date? How was it?

3. Did you take your walks?

4. Did you try asking for guidance in writing, and then listening to the answer?